Royal Canin has released the results of an online survey which found that 43% of all cats in the UK and Ireland have not seen a veterinary surgeon within the last year and 11% have never been to the vet.

The company surveyed 1979 pet owners last December and found the main reason they didn’t take their cat to the vet more often was because the animal appeared to be healthy and therefore didn’t need medical attention.  

The second biggest barrier to more regular vet visits was cost. Although almost half of the cat owners surveyed had pet insurance, almost a quarter said cost prevented them from taking their cat to the vet more often.

Despite there being 760 cat-friendly clinics across the UK and Ireland, 13% percent of owners said the stress put them off making more frequent trips to the vet.

If they were unable to take their cat to the vet, 40% said they would arrange for a vet home visit, 29% said they would search for information online and 26% would turn to friends and family for advice.

The survey also found that 11% of owners believed that their cat was overweight. However, according to a 2018 study, 39% of cats are overweight in the UK, which would suggest that over a quarter of cat owners surveyed were unaware that their cat was above a healthy weight.

References

1. German, A.J., et al. (2018) Dangerous trends in pet obesity. Veterinary record. Vol182 Issue 1

PS: Whilst you're here, take a moment to see our latest job opportunities for vet nurses.